


The Wolves of Magi: A Prequel

by mortythesociopath



Series: Wolves [1]
Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Mild Language, grouchy dragon, little bit of crazy assassin Ja'far
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-19
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-05-02 08:38:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5241842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mortythesociopath/pseuds/mortythesociopath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prequel to my other story "The Wolves of Magi." AU where the characters from Magi are wolves, back around the AoS time period. (Yay baby Ja'far!) fluffy things, mild angst, yada yada.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Orders

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you like! Me and the monsters work hard to please, forgive typos and all that bull... we try. Anyway, enjoy!

Ja'far

A lone white wolf pup paced in the snow. He wondered when the order would come - and what it would be. Not that it mattered. No matter what order was sent he knew he would carry it out without question- and without fail. 

Ja'far wasn't necessarily loyal to the Al Thamen pack. Personally he thought they were a bunch of no good evil bastards. But he was their assassin, and it was the only life he had left now. Ah, there it was. A quick run of lonesome howls echoed over the plain. To any other wolf it would seem a normal night cry - if a bit incoherent. To Ja'far it was the music of his life - the message of his mission. He'd been following the scent for weeks now, and here the order finally came. Infiltrate. Kill. Violet.   
Violet? That last part didn't make much sense, even to him. But he supposed it had something to do with the target. He'd figure it out later. In the meantime, Ja'far took off into the snow, following the scent trail he knew would lead him to his mark. 

Infiltrate. Kill. 

This was what he was built for; he thought calmly, his steely eyes burning with determination in the half light. He ran through the twilight for hours, not stopping until the next morning near a quiet brook for a drink. He could tell he was getting close to the target, no more than a few hours out at most. Ja’far smiled. He loved the sensation that accompanied the chase. The thrill of closing in on his mark. He couldn’t wait to sink his canines into the soft flesh of his kill. Ja’far knew it was probably wrong to be so enthused with the thought of killing his own kind; bringing them down as if they were no better than a rabbit, fleeing the predator that was Ja’far – but this was the only life he’d ever known, and if he was meant to be an assassin, hell if he wasn’t going to be the best the bloodthirsty pack had ever seen.

Ja'far hit the ground with a surprised grunt. What the hell? He thought, glaring up at the purple monstrosity that had bowled him over. 

"Why don't you watch where you're going you clumsy oaf!" He growled. 

"What? Oh, sorry! Look pup, run! No time to explain, let's go!" The other wolf exclaimed in response, before motioning for Ja'far to follow, and running off into the brush at a breakneck speed. Once more, what the hell? He shook himself and ran off after the crazy wolf. As he ran Ja'far studied his attacker closer, an amethyst coated youth, just a few years Ja'far's senior. Violet. Could it be? Was this Ja'far's target? He swiftly scented the air, catching a whiff of the same trail he'd been following for weeks. It was - this bumbling fool was his mark. Who the hell did this kid piss off, that Ja'far was the one sent to deal with him? Oh well, a quick job. Ja'far sped up to catch the running oaf, lowering himself into an attack crouch as he stalked his prey.

 

Sinbad

Sinbad glanced back at the strange white pup. He'd never seen a wolf with a coat so pure. Nor had he ever met one so young that was so angry. He radiated more malice than the old stick in the mud dragon that Sin had stolen dinner from – and was currently sprinting to escape. (Maybe stealing from dragons was a bad idea... But he'd been so hungry! Plus, it sure was exciting!) Sin had thought that would be the strangest thing he did today, but that was before he'd ran into the pup. Sins fur stood on end. There was something off about this kid. He glanced back again to see the kid lowered into a prowl - like the pup was trying to stalk something. Was he stalking him? Sin spun around with a growl to face the malicious pup. 

"What's your problem kid!?" He grumbled, as the pup stopped short and glanced at him with his head cocked in confusion. 

"How'd you know I was going to jump you?" 

"How could I not? You were all wound up ready to pounce like I was some dumb fawn you'd chosen for supper!" With that the kid stopped again, head still cocked, the glare in his steely grey/green eyes faded to a look more like.... Loneliness. Or shame. What the hell? Sin thought, and slowly moved closer to the kid, not sure if he should try and comfort him - or if he'd be far better off running away. 

 

Ja'far

What the hell was the matter with this great purple oaf? He knew that Ja'far was trying to kill him! Why didn't he look frightened? Ugh! This entire mission was not going to plan. Ja'far wasn't used to looking his marks - no his victims - in the eye. As a matter of fact he prided himself in avoiding it. Most of the time his targets never even knew he was coming. That was, after all, why he was Al Thamen's greatest assassin. He was a silent and brutal killer, his marks dropping before they knew what hit them. Where did he go wrong? And what was the look the violet fool was giving him? It almost looked like.... Pity. 

Ja'far snarled. How dare this fool pity him! Ja'far was worthy of no one’s pity. He was a monster. He'd known so from a very young age - when Al Thamen had come for him, and had him slaughter his entire pack - which Ja'far had done gladly, knowing that the punishment the terrifying pack would have for his family would be much more gruesome and merciless than Ja'far's quick killing. Something had broken in Ja'far that day... He'd never quite been the same. And since that day he'd trained and worked hard to reach his position as the pack’s greatest assassin. A monster who murdered his own kind without fear or mercy. That was what lurked behind those steely grey/green eyes. That was what stared out at the amethyst wolf right now. So why wasn't he afraid? Ja'far was so confused. Best to end this right now, before he could muddle it up any farther. 

He let out a low psychotic sounding growl and glared into the golden eyes of the violet wolf. 

"What do you think you're doing, huh?" The bigger wolf asked gently, sitting down in the face of the threat that the white assassin was placing. 

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Ja'far growled in exasperation, rocking back on his haunches in confusion. "Shouldn't you be a little more worried that I'm trying to kill you?" 

"I don't think you'll do it." The other stated simply, throwing a cocky grin Ja'far's way. "I'm Sinbad. What's your name pup?" Ja'far snarled. How dare he! 

"It doesn't matter what I'm called you stupid bumbling fool! You're not going to live long enough to ever speak my name." And with that, he launched himself at the larger wolf.


	2. Assassin

Sinbad snorted and deftly flicked the smaller wolf aside with his tale before pinning the snarling, snapping creature to the dirt beneath one of his big amethyst paws.

“What’s going on pup? I’m getting tired of this game.” He growled.

“Get off me you great oaf!” the white pup snapped angrily – but stopped struggling in favor of a taunt muscled silence. 

“I’m not letting you up until you tell me why a whelp that I don’t even know seems to be trying to kill me. Excuse the precaution but I like my head just how it is – attached.”

“I don’t answer to the likes of you.” The pup snarled. What the hell was this kid’s problem?

“Well, I guess we’ll be here for a while then.” Sin smiled, before sitting all of his weight on the smaller wolf’s chest. He really hoped that Drakon didn’t catch up any time soon – if he did they’d both be dragon food.

“So kid, what’s it going to be? Are we gonna sit here all night or are you gonna talk to me?” Sin’s query was met with hard silence – dwarfed only by the steely hatred in the pup’s silvery eyes. The violet wolf stifled a sigh – it was going to be a very long night.

“You know, this would be easier on both of us if you’d talk. Neither of us is getting any sleep this way.” Sin tried again, only to receive a harsh snort from below. “Fine. Be that way.” He huffed and settled in for the long night ahead.

 

It had been nearly a day and Sin was still sitting on the white pup’s chest. Neither had spoken since the final growls late the previous evening. Sin was beginning to lose hope that the tiny terror would ever speak again. He sighed – not bothering to hide it anymore – and shifted his weight a little to relieve his hind paws, which had fallen asleep ages ago. He settled back down again and chanced a glance at the snowy pup – who was currently feigning indifference and glaring off to the side at a fallen tree. He didn’t fool the violet wolf though; Sin knew he was observing every tiny little movement that anything in this clearing made. Sin rolled his eyes and looked around for anything he could do. He was so bored. And thirsty. And tired. He was used to being insanely hyperactive, and this ceaseless sitting was slowly beginning to get to him. He sighed again.

“My name is Ja’far.” A quiet voice said from below, as the small body began to loosen up. Sin blinked in surprise – was this a trick? Best be on guard.

“Hello, Ja’far. It’s nice to finally hear from you.” He quipped – grinning cockily down on the smaller wolf. The pup huffed and shifted his weight. 

“Listen, I hate to say it, but I’m curious. So I’ll lay off for a bit if you’ll let me up okay? Truce?” Ja’far asked softly. Sin glared down on the younger wolf – there was no way this was legitimate. But as he looked down into those silvery pain filled eyes – he couldn’t help but want to help this pup. 

“Fine. I’m going to get off of you now, don’t try anything, got it?” He growled, waiting for Ja’far to nod before he slowly got up from the ground. When the pup didn’t immediately lunge, he stretched out his back. “Now, pup, what’s your deal? Why are you trying to kill me?”

“I am the assassin of the Al Thamen pack. I have been hired to destroy the violet wolf. I know nothing else. Only that the one of purple fur must die. That’s you – right?” Ja’far answered calmly, standing to stare Sinbad in his amber eyes. 

“Well, I guess I am the only one around with purple fur… I’ve never met another. But who would want me dead? I don’t think I’ve ever pissed anyone off that much – other than Drakon, and let’s face it he’d just eat me, not hire an assassin.” Sin mused, looking down on the snowy pup. “How does someone so young come about being an assassin? And what exactly is Al Thamen? I know their known to be ruthless – but mercenaries? What else are they into?”

“I am the greatest assassin the pack has ever seen – I’ve been trained to kill since the day I was weaned.” The other snarled. “As for the purpose and workings of the pack – I know only what I am told. Who to kill and when to do it. nothing more – nothing less… they don’t like it very much when you give them less. Which is why after this conversation, you’ll have to die.” 

Well, if nothing else the pup was blunt. Sin had no idea what to do. Firstly he had to figure out how not to die. Secondly he needed to learn more about this pack, and what exactly it was that they did. He’d learned that anyone who trained killers was generally out for more than just a happy life – they were out for blood; apparently his. They’d have to try a little harder in order to get that. But how? The kid was wicked fast, and strong – and definitely a much better fighter. Trained from weaning age? Who does that to an innocent pup? And what happened to his family? Sin shook his head and stared down at the dangerous whelp. 

“Why work for them? Clearly they don’t trust you – and judging by what you said about their reaction to failure I’d say they’re none too kind to you – so why stay?” That seemed to stop the pup short. He sat and thought about it for a while, his head cocked in that same way as earlier – with the adorably puzzled expression. Wait – when did he start thinking the pup was adorable? 

“It’s the only life I’ve ever known.” The pup said slowly. He looked up into the eyes of his intended victim with so much pain and loss in his eyes that Sin couldn’t help but scoot closer to him to try and comfort him. 

Or he would’ve if a massive green dragon hadn’t chosen that moment to come bursting into the clearing shooting flames in every direction.

“SINBAD!!!” It roared.


	3. Monster

“Damn.” Sin breathed, tackling the white pup out of the way of the massive, green scaly foot that descended where he’d previously been standing.

Drakon roared and spewed fire as far as he could in all directions, giving Sin and Ja’far just enough time to dive out of the way before they roasted to death in the heat of his flames. 

“What the hell?” The pup roared in response, shaking soot from his now singed fur.

“SINBAD! YOU’VE STOLEN FROM ME FOR THE LAST TIME, YOU VIOLET MENACE!” The beast boomed at the top of his giant lungs.

“Now, Drakon, we can talk about this – no harm, no foul – right, old buddy?” The amethyst wolf chuckled benignly up at the huge adolescent dragon. Drakon wasn’t much older than Sin, but being a dragon he grew fast, and was nearly as tall as the trees surrounding them – and thusly extremely destructive when on a rampage. Until meeting with the assassin pup, something like this would have been the highlight of Sin’s day – it was always fun to outwit the giant beast after stealing a nice lunch from his cave – but now all He wanted to do was talk to the snowy wolf, and figure out what exactly it was about the infuriating whelp that was so intriguing. 

Sin shook himself out of his inner musings just in time to leap out of the path of another fireball.

“SINBAD, COME OUT HERE AND LET ME EAT YOU! IT’S THE LEAST YOU CAN DO AFTER STEALING MY MEAL, AFTER ALL.” 

“Tempting offer, but I think I’ll have to pass.” Sin grinned, diving again as the giant’s tail swung to behead him with its wickedly sharp spines.

“Why in the hell would you steal from a dragon you buffoon!?” The snowy pup growled at him from across the clearing.

“I was bored, it was Thursday…” 

“I’m going to kill you!”

“You’ll have to fight the dragon for the chance!” Sin laughed as he once more dove beneath the heat of the angry dragon’s flames. “C’mon Drakon! Lighten up! It was just a leg! I didn’t even take the whole deer! It’s not like you can’t just catch another one!”

“OR I COULD JUST EAT YOU AND ALL MY PROBLEMS WOULD BE SOLVED!”

“Yes, sure, but if you eat me you won’t have anyone left to chase! And then you’ll be bored, honestly this whole thing has just been me looking after you the entire time! I’m just trying to keep you in shape buddy.” In lieu of a reply the dragon simply roared all the louder and lowered his head to charge the violet wolf. A sooty grey blur tainted the edge of Sin’s vision as Ja’far slammed into his side to knock him out of the way. “You saved me?”

“Don’t get used to it.” The pup growled, before launching himself at the scaly monster. 

“You idiot! Don’t attack a freaking dragon!” Sin yelled, catching the whelp by his charred tail just in time to save him from a wicked swipe from Drakon’s sharp claws. 

“Don’t bite my tail!”

“I was saving your fool life!” He growled back at the pup’s irritated snap. “You can’t just lunge at a dragon!” 

“ARE YOU TWO DONE BICKERING LIKE A MARRIED PAIR YET – OR SHOULD I JUST SETTLE IN?”

“We are not bickering!” The young wolves yelled in unison, and then glanced at each other in surprise. He really was a cute kid, Sin thought – if only he could get over this whole “I’m going to kill you” thing. Sin couldn’t help but want to help the whelp; he just looked so… wounded. Sin would do anything to help mend those wounds.

“Get your head out of the clouds you brainless oaf!” Ja’far screamed and tackled the larger wolf out of the way of a vicious swipe that would’ve surely ended his life. The two tumbled into the brush and down a small embankment into the river. Sin cracked his head on a boulder and knew no more. 

 

When he came to, the pup was leaning over him, gently bumping his muzzle with his small nose. The dragon was nowhere to be found. 

“Y-you saved me?” He stuttered.

“Yeah… I guess I did. It didn’t feel right to let you get eaten by a dragon. You… you deserve a more dignified death than that.”

“So, you still plan to kill me then?”

“I guess I can postpone for a little while. That bump on your head is pretty nasty – I’d hate to fight an opponent who wasn’t sound enough to defend himself.” The snowy wolf grinned sheepishly, bumping Sin’s nose one more time before backing away to sit and watch while the larger wolf rolled over into a seated position. 

“Thanks for that.” Sin snorted. “Where’s Drakon?” 

“He’s still up there – I think he finally raged himself out. We’re pretty far downstream; it should be safe to get some sleep, if you want.”

“I’m good. You can though, I’ll keep watch.” The violet wolf said, stretching his back with a yawn. 

“Yeah, sure, I’ll definitely sleep and let you get away, right?”

“Actually I wasn’t planning on it – I’m not in any shape to get very far anyway – you’d catch up again easily even if I did run.” Sin grinned wryly. “Go ahead, get some rest. I’ll still be here when you wake up.”

“Swear?” Ja’far asked, his suspicious glare broken by a massive yawn. Sin lowered his head in ascension before motioning for the smaller wolf to lie down. The snowy pup sat and cocked his head in that endearing confused way of his again until, with one last weak glare, Ja’far sank to the ground and laid his soot stained muzzle on his damp paws, and swiftly fell asleep. Sin grinned and shook his head at the pup – he really was quite adorable. He sighed and settled in for the night, with one last glance at the white wolf, he prepared for the long night ahead. Maybe Ja’far, the white assassin of Al Thamen, wasn’t as much of a monster as he thought he was. Maybe he was just a poor, lost pup who needed a friend. Either way, Sin was – ridiculously, he admitted– determined to stick around and find out.


	4. Hunter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I am soooo sorry that it’s taken me so long to update, school got crazy for a bit, but now it’s summer!! Woo! I should be updating a little more regularly (Don’t hold me to it though… schizophrenia makes for a really shitty sense of time…) You’re welcome to PM me and yell at me to get my ass in gear at any point! Haha, anywho! Here’s your next installment of the Wolves Prequel, two for one deal today, and my other two fics should be updating in the next few days as well! I love you guys and thanks for sticking with me even though I’m horrible at updating! Without further ado:

Ja’far

Ja’far was so confused. He didn’t know how to take this purple buffoon. Who the _hell_ stole food from a goddamn _dragon?!_ He had to be a total _moron_ – but, Ja’far had to admit, he sure did make things interesting. To be honest he’d gotten bored of his assassin life. How entertaining could life be after all, when all you ever do is kill without so much as a struggle? At least with this Sinbad fellow he was entertained. And there was something about him – he wasn’t exactly sure what – that seemed to draw Ja’far to him; like a gypsy moth to the roaring heat of a forest fire. Ja’far almost wanted to join Sinbad in his crazy adventures.

What were these thoughts? The snowy wolf couldn’t leave the organization – he didn’t know how for starters. How did one go about telling a group of evil, insane, killer sons of bitches to stick it up their ass? However, he truly did feel an almost imperceptible pull toward the amethyst wolf. All of this was running through the white pup’s head while he laid down to rest – he restrained the urge to sigh. Dammit. What was he supposed to do? Not that it mattered in this moment, he thought, hoping that the crazy wolf didn’t run away while he slept – it would be so annoying to have to chase him down again.

 Sinbad

Sin grinned as the pup fell asleep – for some reason he couldn’t get enough of looking at the smaller wolf. He wanted to spend the rest of his life looking at him – what the _hell!?_ Five minutes ago the crazy whelp was trying to kill him! Where the hell did he get around thinking something like that!? UGH! How hard did he hit his damn head!? Whatever, it didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting to the bottom of this. He really didn’t think the small wolf was going to kill him – at least not anymore. But the fact still stood that someone had hired an _assassin_ to hunt his ass! Who could it be?

He shifted up from the ground and slowly walked around the clearing, trying to shake the probable concussion from his addled mind. Who? He flopped back down into the dirt and buried his head in between his paws. Off in the distance he could hear crashing as Drakon moved through the forest back to his cave. The violet wolf sighed, once more absentmindedly staring at the snowy furred youth; it was going to be a long day.


	5. Plans and Promises

Ja’far

            To his immense surprise, when the snowy wolf awoke a few hours later, Sinbad was still laying a few feet away in the clearing. Ja’far stood and stretched the sleep from his muscles, flicking his ears instinctively in search of any imminent danger.

            “Good morning.” The violet wolf grinned, climbing to his feet with a barely perceptible stumble. His head must still hurt pretty badly to affect his coordination like that.

            “Morning, idiot.” The silvery eyed wolf glared. “So, I’m willing to return the favor and keep watch while you rest, unless you’ve got any more insanity planned for today – haven’t been stealing from other wolf packs have we, or perhaps sea serpents and basilisks? A minotaur, by any chance?”

            “No, just the dragon.” Sinbad chuckled in response. “I wouldn’t mind a couple hour’s nap, if you don’t care to let me live for that much longer, I’d rather die well rested and smart-mouthed if given the choice.”

            “I doubt that any amount of injury or sleep deprivation could rob you of your mouth, have no fear.” Ja’far quipped back. What the fuck was he doing? He couldn’t believe he’d actually just attempted to _cut up_ with his mark. The snowy wolf didn’t kid with anyone. Sinbad looked just as shocked as he was.

            “Go ahead and get some sleep. I promise not to tear out your throat the moment you close your eyes.”

            “Well, that’s a comfort.” Sin grinned, following it up with a long yawn as he curled up in a patch of sunlight. “Ja’far, promise me one more thing?”

            “What, you great oaf?”

            “Promise me you won’t disappear?” The purple wolf murmured sleepily.

            Ja’far was utterly taken aback, certain that the golden eyed youth would’ve never said something like that had his brain not been addled by sleep and injury. Nevertheless, the request struck a chord somewhere within the stonehearted assassin for some reason that he himself didn’t understand.

            “I – I promise.” He whispered softly, but it went unheard, as the amethyst wolf had already fallen asleep.

 

Sinbad

            He dreamed the wild, erratic and kaleidoscopic dreams of the recently concussed. His dream-self seemed irrationally panicked for some unknown reason racing about the forest, until he reached a certain stand of trees in which he found Ja’far, his snowy fur dyed crimson by his own blood, trembling with the last vestiges of life.

            “S-in…ba….” he breathed, the word a rattle in his chest.

           

            “NO!” Sin bolted awake with a growl, breathing hard he glared around the clearing, ready to fight to his last breath.

            “What the hell are you doing, you moron?”

             The fog of sleep clearing from his amber eyes, Sinbad glanced toward the voice, spotting the white wolf, perfectly intact and more than a little pissed off, he realized it had all been a dream.

           “Sorry.” He sighed, sitting down and staring across the clearing at Ja’far. “Nightmare.”

           “Must’ve been some dream.”

           “Yeah, I guess.” The violet wolf grunted, silently admonishing himself for his reaction. He couldn’t believe that he was that attached to the whelp that dreaming of his murder would send him into that kind of rage. It was imbecilic. This kid was sent to fucking kill him and here he was letting himself think that they could be friends.

           He was startled out of his reverie by a gentle bump to his shoulder. He glanced down to see the pup, who’d silently wondered over while Sin had been distracted. _Stupid, stupid, stupid!_ If he was going to make it this easy to kill his idiotic ass, he might as well go ahead and off himself to save the silvery-eyed pup the trouble.

           “You alright?” The pup asked, sitting down in front of him with eyes wide. If the amethyst wolf didn’t know better, he would almost say he was concerned.

           “Yeah. I’m fine, sorry.”

           “Stop apologizing, idiot.” Nevermind, there was the pup he’d gotten used to.

           “So, I need to be going. You’re welcome to come with me… you know, if you want. I was thinking about traveling to the frozen north to see what the pack there is like. Or you could go ahead and kill me now and save yourself the trouble, I guess, head on back to your pack and get your payment.”

           The white wolf paused, his head cocked to the side, for a long moment, seeming to consider a variety of possibilities at once. Finally, he looked up at the larger wolf with a grin.

           “I think I just might come along with you, at least for a little while. On one condition, Sinbad. If someday you become boring and fail me, I’ll kill you right away.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! Sorry, the chapters are kind of short, but I wanted to end it with the quote from chapter 24 of the manga. IF ANYONE KNOWS THE WORD THAT STARTS WITH AN “L” AND MEANS “TRIPPY/PSYCADELIC” PLEASE GOD, PM ME! I spent like 30 minutes trying to come up with it and failed miserably haha. I hope you guys enjoy and I promise more sporadic updates will be forthcoming! See ya on the flip side!


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